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Ryan Phillippe and a bevy of other high-profile stars are catching tons of flak for promoting a Saudi Arabia event -- but Ryan is digging his heels in and going to bat for the nation.

Here's the deal ... Ryan and a bunch of other stars like Sofia Richie, Armie Hammer, Irina Shayk, Scott Disick and other models and influences all went to this music festival called MDL BEAST in SA over the weekend, and they all seemed down to plug the hell out of it.

Ryan was in a festive spirit, as he rocked traditional Saudi headgear and face paint. While he called it a "cultural exchange," others found it offensive ... for more reasons than one.

The "Cruel Intentions" star's Instagram comments got flooded with people shaming him for promoting a country that's known for their human rights violations -- especially against women and the LGBTQ community, not to mention journalists they don't like.

Ryan didn't seem to care much about all that though -- he fired back early and often.

He responded to several of the comments -- and his message was basically this ... the country's changing, bro! He doubled down in his support of Saudi Arabia, saying he'd feel good about bringing any woman who was important to him for a visit.

On the other side of things, Sofia also caught tons of backlash for what many deemed tone-deaf posts, including one of her and two other ladies, which she captioned as "Saudi girls." The caption has since been deleted, but Sofia was all over the place touting SA and MDL BEAST.

Ditto for Armie, who likened the event to "Woodstock in the 1960's" and going on to say that he felt things were progressing and moving forward there. Similar messages from most everyone else too, BTW ... who all probably got paid a pretty penny to do this.

Emily Ratajkowski sounded off on the issue, saying she actually turned down payment because she felt the country's practices don't line up with her principles.

NBC has suspended Jeremy Roenick indefinitely without pay ... after the pro-turned-analyst went on a podcast and made sexual comments about his coworkers.

The 20-year vet -- who played for a number of NHL teams including the Blackhawks, Coyotes and Flyers -- appeared on the Barstool Sports "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast when he started talking about his colleagues Kathryn Tappen and Patrick Sharp.

At one point, Roenick discussed going on vacation with his wife and Tappen ... and revealed he joked with a hotel guest about their "situation," saying, “I play it off like we’re going to bed together every night, the three of us.”

Roenick explains that it would NEVER happen ... but added, "If it really came to fruition, that would really be good."

Later in the interview, Roenick praised the host as a coworker, saying she's "one of the most professional sports personalities I know."

As for Sharp, Roenick also gushed about his appearance ... saying he's "so beautiful" and "I'd have to think about it if he asked me ... I wouldn't say no right away."

NBC Sports released a statement on Monday, saying “Jeremy Roenick has been suspended indefinitely without pay for making inappropriate comments about his co-workers."

"We will have no further comment at this time.”

Roenick has been working for NBC Sports since 2010 ... but it's unclear when he'll make it back to the TV screens.

Kylie Jenner's daughter, Stormi Webster, would like to welcome you to her crib for Christmas.

Little Stormi recently got gifted with a major surprise from her grandma, Kris, which was documented on KJ's newest vlog, "My 2019 Christmas Decorations." Check it out ... the kid got a freakin' playhouse, which is just the right size for the almost 2-year-old.

And, by that we mean it's life-size ... and it's got everything inside to make it feel like a real pad, including AC, furniture, a kitchen, a second story and a balcony. A BALCONY!!!

Kris and Kylie give a brief tour of the interior before showing it to Stormi, who seemed pretty excited to go inside. Funny enough, her mom says she used to have something very similar herself when she was Stormi's age, and that memory makes Kris super emotional.

Stormi definitely makes herself at home as she explores the nooks and crannies. And, as Grandma Kris says ... it's her house now -- and you can certainly tell she's claiming it.

Anyway, if you'd be so kind as to leave your Birkin bags and shoes at the door, please. We're sure Stormi would appreciate it.

Santa Claus isn't the only one coming down the chimney this Christmas as one household learned in dramatic fashion ... ya gotta watch out for those night owls too.

This is pretty nuts ... a family in upstate New York wanted to light a fire in their fireplace this past weekend for a holiday party but heard fluttering noises from inside their chimney. They figured it was a bird or an animal, so held off on lighting up for the moment.

By Sunday, we're told the noises had stopped ... so the fam figured whatever was in there had gotten out and scrammed. Naturally, they went ahead and started that fire they wanted to get going the night before.

To their surprise ... things ended with an unexpected visitor dropping in (literally) and almost getting burnt to a crisp. Luckily, no animals were harmed in the making of this story.

A fully-grown screech-owl fell down the chimney and was frantically trying to escape the flames. The people inside obviously noticed and immediately cut off the fire ... and eventually got a hold of the little guy, who might've been a little toasty, but wasn't injured.

We're told the family called animal control, which came through and took possession of the owl and took it to a shelter, where it was given fluids due to dehydration. It'll be released in a few days, and yes ... it should be A-OK for Christmas.

Cardi B is playing Santa Claus this year -- only she's doing it without the big red hat, reindeer or sleigh -- and will bring smiles to a ton of kid's faces.

Cardi was spotted in Miami Friday spending a bunch of money on gifts for kids at a local Target store. The rapper also had a U-HAUL rented to load the presents and ship em off for those in need.

We're told in total, Cardi spent about $5,000 on everything from games, dolls, car sets and more. She had staffers help her load everything up in the truck.

It's unclear exactly where the gifts will go -- Cardi talked about helping kids out in New York -- but nonetheless, it's an awesome gesture.

Cardi's daughter, Kulture, will be celebrating her second Christmas this year, and if mom's spending for other kids on Friday is any indication ... it's about to be a big year.

Merry Christmas from Cardi Claus!!!

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's statue is still taking a beating from pissed off fans ... the international soccer superstar's life-sized tribute in Sweden had its nose cut off and got a new paint job.

As we previously reported ... Ibra's statue outside the soccer stadium in Malmo has been under attack since he bought an ownership stake in another Swedish pro team, Hammarby -- which operates out of Stockholm.

The thing has been through a lot since it debuted in October -- it's been sprayed with paint, had a toilet seat around its arm and a noose around its neck, been set on fire ... and most recently, somebody tried to saw off its feet.

The vandalism continued on Sunday when an angry fan somehow managed to cut off the statue's nose ... and then spray-painted the entire body.

ICYMI -- we spoke with Ibra about the constant statue attacks ... and he played it off like he didn't know what we were talking about (but the dude *HAS* to know about it).

Authorities in Malmo have been investigating the vandalism ... and workers were already power-washing the statue to remove the paint.

Maybe it's time to put the thing in a glass box??

Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" is 25 this year ... and she's landed just about every A-lister in Hollywood to help her celebrate.

Carey just released a brand new music video for the holiday classic with some of her celeb friends singing along to the tune. Features include Kim Kardashian West, James Corden, Ariana Grande, Floyd Mayweather, Chance The Rapper, Katy Perry, Snoop Dogg and Tyler Perry ... just to name a few. In total, there's more than 50 stars in the video.

It's a pretty incredible piece, and shows the power of the tune ... her twins Moroccan and Monroe also make cameos in the project.

Mariah and team launched a massive campaign to get the song to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 a couple weeks ago ... and last week it hit the top of the chart.

Thank God for reinforced glass ... because it saved one little boy from becoming a hungry tiger's lunch.

Check out the insane video ... the boy and his father were visiting The Dublin Zoo and stopped for a quick photo-op with the big cat. You can see the tiger slowly start to creep -- then stop when the boy turns around -- and lunge into a full sprint when the boy looks away again.

The tiger is stopped by the glass before it can get to the boy, desperately pawing for a piece, before finally giving up and searching for its next meal.

Daniel Jones kept the momentum going after throwing 5 TDs on Sunday ... teaming up with Eli Manning for some postgame flip cup at a local bar!!

The Giants rookie made his return to the field after missing a few games due to injury ... and celebrated the big OT win by throwing on his favorite dress shirt and hitting up Green Rock Tap & Grill in Hoboken, NJ.

Danny Dimes, Eli, Saquon Barkley and Reggie White Jr. were all in attendance ... and the QBs bonded over some drinking games.

The guys were the life of the party ... and Eli was even throwing napkins in the air like confetti!!

No word on whether the players picked up another W on the flip cup table, but it's great to see Eli mentoring Daniel on and off the field.

Kanye West brought his city-hopping opera to NYC -- and while much of it was the same -- Yeezy added some Christmas flare to the latest tour stop.

Kanye, his choir and band hit Lincoln Center's David Geffen Hall Sunday to perform "Mary." The stage was decked out in plants, over 100 choir members and props to tell the story of Jesus' birth from the eyes of his mother.

The choir belted out songs from Kanye's "Jesus is King" album -- as they normally have -- but there was also a rendition of "The Little Drummer Boy" added to the setlist.

Dave Chappelle, Bradley Cooper and Kim Kardashian West were among the stars in the crowd ... and Kanye voiced much of the show from offstage.

It's been a family affair for the West's in NYC -- we got Kim, Kanye and the kids leaving The Ritz Friday -- North was definitely in a holiday mood.

Judi Dench really gave "Cats" the finger ... in fact, she gave the audience 5 of them and a wedding ring to boot, in a major flub/oversight.

If you dared to subject yourself to the 2-hour-long feline flick, you may have noticed a decidedly human feature on Dench ... a human hand with a band of gold.

There have been other flubs in the flick, but this one's pretty hilarious.

Universal reportedly notified thousands of theaters they'd be receiving an updated version of the movie with "some improved visual effects."

Jason Derulo, one of the movie's stars has been VERY open in discussing edits. Derulo says his junk had to be CGI'd out of the film because it was just too big ... and looked weird on his cat body.

Taylor Swift, Jennifer Hudson and James Corden are also in the movie -- which can't be saved on star power alone -- it's currently pulling and 18% on Rotten Tomatoes.

A 13-year-old boy's haircut ended in gunfire in Texas after his dad got into it with the barber over a botched job.

The boy stopped in at Magic's Kutts and Fades outside Houston on Saturday for a haircut and left without issue. BUT ... his dad reportedly brought the boy back to the shop later that night and told the barber he messed the kid's cut ... super messed it up.

The barber repaired the 13-year-old's locks free of charge, but the dad and barber got in a fight in the parking lot ... ending when the dad pulled out a gun, shooting the barber 3 times. KHOU reports the barber was shot in the stomach, leg and arm but is expected to survive.

The Harris County Sheriff's Office says the father left the scene in a 4-door sedan ... possibly a Honda Accord. He still has not been apprehended or publicly ID'd.

Cops are combing surveillance footage and want to speak to both the 13-year-old and his father in connection to the shooting.

Jeff Bezos is living the good life -- and it's showing -- down in the Caribbean with his GF, Lauren Sanchez.

Almost a year after going public ... Jeff and Lauren are spending the holiday down in St. Barth's, aboard David Geffen's massive 450-foot superyacht, the Rising Sun. They're definitely looking ... comfortable during what seems to be a dual celebration.

Besides Christmas, it was Lauren's birthday last week. So, twice as many reasons to go anchors aweigh on Geffen's pride and joy ... which they REALLY enjoy, apparently. They also toured the South of France on it back when Jeff went 2 buttons for the win.

Looks like Bezos might squeeze in some work on this trip, too -- comes with being the richest man in the world, we guess.

The couple has a whole group with them, including Russian-American businesswoman Dasha Zhukova and some of her young, attractive friends.

Hey, if ya gotta talk shop ... might as well do it aboard a $600 million dinghy.

Since coming out back in January, both Jeff and Lauren have finalized divorces from their respective exes.

Eddie Murphy made a crack on 'SNL' at Bill Cosby's expense -- and the incarcerated comedian didn't appreciate it one bit ... with his rep calling Ed a "Slave" to Tinseltown.

Cosby's rep, Andrew Wyatt, posted a scathing response Sunday to Eddie's joke -- and it's pretty brutal. Wyatt, speaking on behalf of Bill, writes ... "Mr. Cosby became the first Black to win an Emmy for his role in I Spy and Mr. Cosby broke color barriers in the Entertainment Industry, so that Blacks like Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappell, Kevin Hart and et al., could have an opportunity to showcase their talents for many generations to come."

He went on ... "It is sad that Mr. Murphy would take this glorious moment of returning to SNL and make disparaging remarks against Mr. Cosby," going on to add, "One would think that Mr. Murphy was given his freedom to leave the plantation, so that he could make his own decisions; but he decided to sell himself back to being a Hollywood Slave."

Wyatt continues by comparing Eddie to vaudevillian actor Stepin Fetchit, and said "cooning" equals the destruction of black men in Hollywood. Then ... he offered a truce of sorts.

The guy invites Eddie to meet with Bill in hopes of "having a meeting of the minds" to help the black community instead of tearing it down -- something BC apparently thinks Eddie is doing by taking shots at him on national television.

ICYMI, Eddie joked if you would've told him 30 years ago he'd be this stay-at-home dad like he is now with so many kids (10 of 'em) while the Cos himself was in jail ... he would've taken that bet. He then imitated Cosby's voice, calling himself "America's Dad."

R. Kelly and Michael Cohen are spending their first Christmas behind bars, and they're about to find out what Suge Knight and Billy McFarland already know -- time to pig out unless you're Bill Cosby.

Prisons across the country are feeling the Christmas spirit, and they're stocking commissaries with special holiday treats, and allowing inmates to spend a little extra on sweets. Rejoice!!!

We did some digging and found out what some of America's most famous convicts will be fattening up on before their New Year's resolutions ... here's a breakdown of their options:

Kelly at MCC Chicago:

-- The spending limit for commissary increases by $50 in December to a cool $410, and Kelly can snack on holiday cookies, pound cake, jalapeno cheese and chocolate bars.

Cohen at New York's FCI Otisville:

-- President Trump's former personal attorney can also spend $410 at commissary this month after a $50 bump, and he can nosh on holiday cakes, chocolate and caramel clusters, assorted chocolates and an olive salad.

Pete Wentz gives the third in the 'Star Wars' trilogy his stamp of approval, but after a 42-year journey amassing millions of fans and billions of dollars ... he doesn't expect everyone to agree.

The Fall Out Boy bassist was out in Studio City, and we got him shortly after he took in 'The Rise of Skywalker' ... which he tells us he liked a lot, and calls "an amazing fairy tale."

Pete does admit there were some parts of the film he wasn't totally into, but settles on it being "pretty darn good" ... which is much better than what many folks felt about 'The Last Jedi.'

Wentz addresses that too, telling us "spoiled" fans should consider themselves lucky to be debating the quality of new 'Star Wars' projects -- and whether the partnership with Disney helped or hurt them -- because when he was a kid ... all of this seemed unimaginable.

He also urges fans to have fun while debating the films with each other online and elsewhere, and if there are disagreements ... just be respectful.